Problem Based Learning in Undergraduate Science Education - Need of the hour

Problem Based Learning in Undergraduate Science Education 

- Need of the hour

(In Perspectives on Higher Education 2010

Ed. Shivajirao Kadam,

Bharati Vidyapeeth Deemed Universit Pune)

H. C. Pradhan

HBCSE, TIFR, V. N. Purav Marg, Mankhurd

Mumbai – 400 088

 

A.  K . Mody

V. E.S. College of Arts, Science and Commerce, Sindhi Society

Chembur, Mumbai – 400 071

Abstract:

In this article we describe a method of problem based learning for science courses. This method is constructivist in the sense that it helps students construct their own knowledge. Our success in teaching undergraduate physics students with this methodology via a supplementary programme makes us suggest that it be adopted for undergraduate science education in general.

Introduction:

One of the complaint from teachers of all sciences is voiced succinctly in the joint report by all the distinguished science academies in the country, Indian Academy of Science, Indian National Science Academy and National Academy of Science, the report notes¹: ‘most students who join the science stream as undergraduates are neither willing to nor capable of finally taking up an academic career (R&D and/or teaching)’.

These students have poor understanding and comprehension of concepts although have knowledge of facts and formulae. However the general curriculum overlooks these facts and continues in a logical sequence.

In Taxonomy of Educational Objectives, Bloom² talks about six major classes:

1. Knowledge
2. Comprehension
3. Application
4. Analysis
5. Synthesis
6. Evaluation

The traditional system tests only memorization and to some extent comprehension, which are only first two of the six educational objectives.

As noted by Verma³, ‘In our country traditionally and very often even now, science is primarily learnt as ‘Received knowledge’, as a body of facts which has developed over a long period of time and which doesn’t leave any question, or at least any important question, unanswered. The nature of the curriculum, the manner in which you transact it in a classroom and the kind of examination system we have, all conspire to bring this about. In the traditional framework there is no room for experimentation or investigation or discussion because these are simply viewed as wasted efforts, which interfere with the efficient transaction of the curriculum in the classroom’.

Thus our system delivers at the most till first two level of taxonomy and assessment also remains limited to these levels only.

We share our belief with many educationists, which are that⁴ ‘all these students have capability, though latent, but this needs to be brought out’.

Capacity building requires a strategy to be evolved at an undergraduate level for effective curriculum transaction.

Three ways of constructivist teaching/learning methods are suggested in the literature:

1. Situated learning
2. Cognitive apprentice
3. Problem based learning

In an undergraduate college set up, problem based learning (PBL) seems to be a good candidate as a remedy for the existing situation. Although need to include problem solving in science is being realised in India now, none of the efforts made has so far come up with any strategy to actively engage students. It is almost left to students’ initiative and interest.

In any case how much of knowledge that students acquire is needed to be used in real life and needs to be on fingertips? In real life, whatever career student takes up, they would be required to solve problems. These may be from the subject they have learned or otherwise. At the same time due to explosion in the amount of scientific knowledge, it has become difficult for students to learn everything in their field of interest. It is not possible for an undergraduate curriculum to cover such a large amount of scientific knowledge. The need is to equip students with necessary skills needed to learn and understand independently. Thus it is important that education focuses on problem solving skill and let students learn to construct their knowledge through problems. This way we are teaching learners how to learn. As mentioned earlier problem solving is also considered as one of the constructivist⁵ teaching learning methodology.

Problem Based Learning:

Tan⁶ has noted that in their attempts to innovate learning, educators are exploring methodologies that emphasize these facets:

• Real-world challenges

• Higher-order thinking skills

• Problem-solving skills

• Interdisciplinary learning

• Independent learning

• Information-mining skills

• Teamwork

• Communication skills

PBL (Problem based learning) approaches appear to be promising in addressing most of these needs. More importantly, PBL is able to address these holistically.

Tan^6,7 has argued that PBL brings curriculum shift of three foci of preoccupation as illustrated in Figure below.

According to Tan⁶, It is not how much content we disseminate in our classrooms but how we engage students’ motivation and independent learning that is important. For Science teaching he has noted that ‘Breakthroughs in science and technology are often the result of fascination with problems. Great learning often begins with preoccupation with a problem, followed by taking ownership of the problem and harnessing of multiple dimensions of thinking. Problems and the questions associated with them when strategically posed can enhance the depth and quality of thinking. What is often lacking in education today is the effective use of inquiry and problem-based learning approaches.’

Good problem design⁶ takes into consideration:

• the goals of PBL

• Students’ profiles

• problem characteristics: authenticity, curriculum relevance, multiplicity and integration of disciplines

• the problem context: ill-structuredness, motivation of ownership, challenge and novelty

• the learning environment and resources

• problem presentation

The teacher’s role in PBL⁶ is very different from that in a didactic classroom. In PBL, the teacher thinks in terms of the following:

• How can I design and use real-world problems (rather than what content to disseminate) as anchors around which students could achieve the learning outcomes?

• How do I coach students in problem-solving processes, self-direction and peer learning (instead of how best to teach and give information)?

• How will students see themselves as active problem solvers (rather than passive listeners)?

Likewise, in PBL the teacher focuses⁶ on:

• facilitating the PBL processes of learning (e.g. changing mindsets, developing inquiry skills, engaging in collaborative learning)

• coaching students in the heuristics (strategies) of problem solving (e.g. deep reasoning, metacognition, critical thinking, systems thinking)

• mediating the process of acquiring information (e.g. scanning the information environment, accessing multiple information sources, making connections)

For science students, it is important that they are introduced to existing knowledge, experimental findings as well as theoretical framework before they attempt to solve problems.

In trying to solve problems, students learn to pay attention to important information. They learn to represent and rearrange information in terms of symbols, diagrams, graphs or visual image. They learn to see pattern and correlation between the important aspects. They discover path/s that flow from given information to the target. Thus through the process of solving problems, they achieve higher objectives (beyond first two) of Bloom’s taxonomy.

Models of problem-based learning - Maggi Savin-Baden

	Model I PBL for Epistemological Competence	Model II PBL for Professional Action	Model III PBL for Interdisciplinary Understanding	Model IV PBL for Transdisciplinary Learning	Model V PBL for Critical Contestability
Knowledge	Propositional	Practical and performative	Propositional, performative and practical	Examining and testing out of given knowledge and frameworks	Contingent, contextual and constructed
Learning	The use and management of a prepositional body of knowledge to solve or manage a problem	The outcome-focused acquisition of knowledge and skills for the work place	The synthesis of knowledge with skills across discipline boundaries	Critical thought and decentring oneself from disciplines in order to understand them	A flexible entity that involves interrogation of frameworks
Problem Scenario	Limited-solutions already known and are designed to promote cognitive understanding	Focused on a real-life situation that requires an effective practical resolution	Acquiring knowledge to be able to do, therefore centred around knowledge with action	Characterised by resolving and managing dilemmas	Multidimensional, offering students options for alternative ways of knowing and being
Students	Receiver of knowledge who acquire and understand prepositional knowledge through problem-solving	Pragmatists inducted into professional cultures who can undertake practical action	Integrators across boundaries	Independent thinkers who take up a critical stance towards learning	Explorers of underlying structures and belief systems
Facilitator	A guide to obtaining the solution and to understanding the correct prepositional knowledge	A demonstrator of skills and a guide to ‘best practice’	A coordinator of knowledge and skill acquisition across boundaries of both	An orchestrator of opportunities for learning (in its widest sense)	A commentator, a challenger and decoder of cultures, disciplines and traditions
Assessment	The testing of a body of knowledge to ensure students have developed epistemological competence	The testing of skills and competencies for the work place supported by a body of knowledge	The examination of skills and knowledge in a context that may have been learned out of context	The opportunity to demonstrate an integrated understanding of skills and personal and prepositional knowledge across disciplines	Open-ended and flexible

In the process of solving problems here teacher acts as a facilitator. Thus it can be seen that PBL Model I out of those suggested by Maggi Savin-Baden⁸ (see the table) suits best for teaching science.

Designing a problem:

In order to design problems for the course, the following is the strategy that has to be adopted.

1.      Area of the subject has to be identified keeping in mind students’ familiarity with the subject, there back ground: strengths and weaknesses. For example, we chose basic physics as weakness of students and thus developed a course based on problems from basic physics.

2.      For designing problems from a particular area-sub area, underlying concepts and key points have to be identified that we need to address and highlight. For example, we may identify Mechanics as sub area and kinematics of motion as concept and velocity, acceleration, displacement, frames of reference as key points.

3.      Once this is done, identify the goal of a problem in accordance with why a particular problem is to be set up (learning objectives) as already discussed. This may involve some application (preferably one that students can relate to) and its inter relation to equation. We may have a problem that involves description of motion involving motion that has these key points to be addressed and may involve calculation using relevant equations that students have to identify. 

4.      Problem may involve some goal that may involve concepts from different areas/sub areas to highlight interconnection between different areas/sub areas of the subject.

Care needs to be taken that the goal in the problem should not be too obvious, for example as in some plug in problems, that there is no challenge involved in solving the problem.

We have tried to incorporate these ideas in selecting our special problems for the course designed and following Reddish⁹ termed them as touchstone problems.

By touchstone problem we mean a problem, which satisfies more than one of the following criteria.:

(i)                 A problem which incorporates basic principle/s      

(ii)               A problem which is attractive enough or is rich in context

(iii)             The problem should be sufficiently difficult but not too difficult to put students off

(iv)             Should require steps that are not a repetitive pattern and at the same time should involve some decision making

(v)               The problem should have a reasonable goal

(vi)             The problem should guide students to comprehend the topic and/or application.

The strategy adopted was as follows. If a touchstone problem is difficult, it can be broken up in to parts. We have developed auxiliary problems corresponding to each part. Auxiliary problems or smaller problems to comprehend the touchstone problem is the technique we have used. The students are guided to solve these auxiliary problems, so that they are able to comprehend the touchstone problem as a whole and solve it.

Constructivist Method adopted in PBL:

Guiding students to solve problems involves (1) guiding students to create appropriate visualization or mental picture or (2) pointing to them the precise auxiliary problem (3) creating cognitive conflict with their misconception or (4) involving them in a reflective metacognitive discussion so as to arrive at a strategy to solve the problem.

The specific presentation and explanation strategy varies from problem to problem and depends on the area being covered by the problem. It also varies with needs of individual student and involves creating on the spot activity to help the student develop insight into the subject and the process involved.

Here the instructor plays the role of a facilitator and help learners to develop their own understanding of concepts. The learning environment has to be designed to support and challenge (through problems and counter questions) the learner’s thinking. Thus learning becomes an active process where the learners learn to discover principles, concepts and facts themselves.

Students learn by building upon knowledge they already possess themselves and guided interventions are used to correct errors, which creep in their understanding. Most importantly, there has to be effective scaffolding. That is, students are not given answers to any questions, but are guided (using interventions like auxiliary problems, counter questions, cognitive conflicts) to converge to the answer themselves.

Conclusion:

We carried out an experiment^5,10,11 to teach physics at undergraduate college level in an Indian college set up using problem based learning and constructivist strategy and found it to be successful in building capacity of students. Such constructivist teaching also calls for assessment, which does justice to students in testing according to higher educational objectives, i.e., beyond simple memorization test.

Our experiment was teaching students as a supplementary course during the vacation period as traditional system does not have provision for such experimentation.

With the methodology described above, we found students learn to construct their own knowledge through challenged posed to them. There was also significant change in their belief about themselves and the subject. Through observations, qualitative questionnaire and interaction with same students over a period of time, we found their opinion changed about the subject (physics).  From ‘it is difficult’ to ‘it is not so difficult’, from ‘I do not understand’ to ‘I can do it’. They also were motivated to pursue career in the subject. The fear of failure, which prevented them from putting efforts, was gone and students were ready to spend more time studying the subject seriously. They were ready to face competitive exams, which earlier they never thought of.

Based on our success we suggest, it is time that our university system open up for such methods and experimentation. This is how we shall be able to achieve all the objectives of Bloom’s taxonomy and make science education relevant and meaningful.

References:

1.      Joint Science Education Panel (IASc, INSA, NASI), “A position paper”, Resonance 13 (12) 1177 – 1190 (Dec 2008)

2.      Bloom Benjamin S. (1980). Ed., Engelhart Max D., Furst Edward J., Hill Walker H., Krathwohl David R.,  ‘Taxonomy of Educational Objectives, Vol. I’, Longman Inc.

3.      Vijay S. Verma (2004). ‘How should Physics be taught to facilitate understanding?’,  Proceedings of the International Seminar on Construction of Knowledge, April 16-18, Vidya Bhawan Society, Udaipur

4.      National Curriculum Framework-2005 , Published by NCERT.

5.      Pradhan H.C. & Mody A. K. (2009). ‘Constructivism applied to physics teaching for                                     capacity building of undergraduate students’, University News, 47 (21) 4-10.

6.      Tan Oon-Seng. (2000). ‘Reflecting on innovating the academic architecture for the 21^st Century’, Educational Developments, 1, 8-11.

7.      Tan Oon-Seng. (2003 ). ‘Problem-Based Learning Innovation: Using Problems to Power  learning in the 21st Century’, Cengage Learning, Singapore.

8.      Baden Maggi Savin. (2000). ‘Problem-based Learning in Higher Education: Untold Stories’, The Society for Research into Higher Education & Open University Press.

9.      Redish Edward F(1994). ‘Implications of cognitive studies for teaching Physics’, Am. J. Phys. 62 (9), 796 - 803

10.  Pradhan H.C. & Mody A. K. (2009). ‘Supplementary Programme for Capacity Building of  Physics Undergraduate Students’, Physics Education, 26 (2) 93-98

11.  Pradhan H.C. & Mody A. K. (2009) ‘Physics Teaching and Learning Through Problems’, Bulletin of Indian Association of Physics Teachers, 1 (12)